I have always wanted to try some of these Japanese beauty supplements. In the past, I had tried Fancl’s Tense Up, a collagen drink, which is very pricey; I had also tried some of DHC’s various supplements too. But what I really need is something to fight the lines. This was popping up everywhere I looked – online and stores here – so for Mother’s Day, I put this on my wish list and my husband bought it for me as a gift. After all the sleep deprivation and taking care of a very active 3 year old, I need all the help I can get – inside and out – to turn back the clock.

My husband bought this at Japan Beauty Images inside the Japanese shopping centre (J-town) at Victoria Park & Steeles (Toronto) area. At the time, it was on sale for CAD$44.99 (originally CAD$49.99), but I saw this further reduced to CAD$39.99 as of last weekend. You can also get this from sasa.com too.

The dosage is 7g per day, which you dole out with the plastic spoon (included). One can lasts exactly 30 days.

The product claims to improve skin by replenishing collagen in your body, which doesn’t get produced as much after you turn 25. Collagen can help repair skin damage such as scars, fine lines, sun damage, hyperpigmentation, etc. The powder form also makes it easy to add to any food or drink, providing that you don’t mind the altered taste of course.

My Review:

After 30 days, I didn’t notice any improvement in my skin. The fine lines are still there, my skin is still very dehydrated and there is no visible improvement on freckles. However, I must add that I haven’t been sleeping more than 5 hours a day for the past 2-3 months so I am sure the sleep deprivation does a lot of damage too. Also, I don’t know how long you need to take this on a daily basis to see results – months perhaps?

Another problem I had with this product is that I am lactose intolerant. You may want to know this part because this can affect the absorption of the product. This powder is condensed milk based (it looks and smells like baby formula actually) – so if you are lactose intolerant, I don’t know how well your body will absorb the collagen. Because the collagen is from fish, there is a very slight fishy smell to the powder, though you will largely smell milk rather than the fish when you drink it. I usually mixed this with a bit of juice (it is recommended to mix with juice that contains Vitamin C to enhance absorption) so the taste isn’t too bothersome. It really isn’t to be honest, but if you have any sensitivity towards milk/dairy or lactose intolerance, this may not be a good idea.

The price of this is not too bad (though not cheap per month), but considering it’s the price of a skin care product you can use over the course of at least a month to 3 months, I don’t think I will invest in this again. Not to mention that this upset my stomach. If you need to take this for months to even see results (not guaranteed by the way), it will cost quite a bit of money. I find that, personally, when I took fish oil supplements with high concentrations of the Omegas (3 and 6), my skin actually looks more plump and oilier; but with this, perhaps due to my lactose intolerance, I didn’t see any improvement at all.

Bottom line: too expensive to go past one month, with no promise to really turn your skin around. At this price, you can get yourself a nice serum or cream that will probably moisturize your skin better.

Wow, 2 years, did it make any difference in your skin at all?!!! I am weary of a lot of these supplements, my brother is a doctor and he said our bodies don’t absorb a lot of the supplements, it’s better to obtain from our food instead. A good night sleep does wonders too, better than a scoop of collagen powder…

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